Books by H G Wells

Book SynopsisHarperCollins is proud to present its incredible range of best-loved, essential classics.For a time I believed that mankind had been swept out of existence, and that I stood there alone, the last man left alive.When a strange, meteor-like object lands in the heart of England, the inhabitants of Earth find themselves victims of a terrible attack. A ruthless race of Martians, armed with heat rays and poisonous smoke, is intent on destroying everything that stands in its way. As the unnamed hero struggles to find his way across decimated wastelands, the fate of the planet hangs in the balance . . .H. G. Wells was a pioneer of modern science fiction. First serialised in the UK in 1897, The War of the Worlds is one of the earliest stories to depict conflict with an extraterrestrial race, and has influenced countless adaptations and sequels.Trade Review‘groundbreaking … a true classic that has pointed the way not just for science-fiction writers, but for how we as a civilisation might think of ourselves’ Guardian ‘[Wells’ work is] astonishingly rich in human and historical interest … he foresaw the invention of, among other things, television, tanks, aerial warfare and the atom bomb’ David Lodge ‘I personally consider the greatest of English living writers [to be] H. G. Wells’ Upton Sinclair

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Book SynopsisThe first modern tale of alien invasion, H.G. Wells's The War of the Worlds remains one of the most influential science fiction novels ever published.The night after a shooting star is seen streaking through the sky from Mars, a cylinder is discovered on Horsell Common in London. At first, naïve locals approach the cylinder armed just with a white flag - only to be quickly killed by an all-destroying heat-ray, as terrifying tentacled invaders emerge. Soon the whole of human civilisation is under threat, as powerful Martians build gigantic killing machines, destroy all in their path with black gas and burning rays, and feast on the warm blood of trapped, still-living human prey. The forces of the Earth, however, may prove harder to beat than they at first appear. The War of the Worlds has been the subject of countless adaptations, including an Orson Welles radio drama which caused mass panic when it was broadcast, with listeners confusing it for a news broadTrade Review“The creations of Mr. Wells . . . belong unreservedly to an age and degree of scientific knowledge far removed from the present, though I will not say entirely beyond the limits of the possible.” —Jules Verne

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Book SynopsisPenguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers'' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.Visit the Penguin Readers websiteExclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.Griffin is a scientist, and he discovers how to make things invisible. Then he becomes invisible himself. Griffin thinks that an invisible man will have a lot of power. But life becomes more and more difficult.

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Book SynopsisPenguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers'' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.The War of the Worlds, a Level 1 Reader, is A1 in the CEFR framework. Short sentences contain a maximum of two clauses, introducing the past simple tense and some simple modals, adverbs and gerunds. Illustrations support the text throughout, and many titles at this level are graphic novels.The Martians are coming! They are burning houses and killing the people of Earth. How can the people stop them?Visit the Penguin Readers websiteExclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.

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Book SynopsisA stunning full-colour illustrated adaptation of H. G. Wells' sci-fi classic, from the illustrator of A Boy Called Christmas and The Iron Man.1894. Across space, this earth is being watched by envious eyes.What seems to be a meteorite falls to earth, but from the debris unfolds a terrifying alien threat . . .Leon and and his scientist wife race against the clock to end the war of all worlds.This is a modernised graphic novel retelling of one of the most popular science fiction novels ever written, now suitable for a younger 11+ readership.Exquisite, detailed illustrations . . . convey as much emotion as do words in this remarkable re-imagining of War of the Worlds.' Susan Price, Carnegie winning author of Ghost DrumAn absolute masterpiece.' Kieran Larwood, author of The World of Podkin One-Ear series

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Book SynopsisNobody suspects that intelligent life exists on other planets until a cylinder falls to Earth and lands in the town of Woking. From this ominous metallic cylinder emerge the unsightly Martians, equipped with terrifying killing machines. Although the Martians initially provoke local curiosity, this rapidly turns to fear as the savage attacks begin.

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With an Introduction and Notes by Dr Andrew Frayn, Lecturer in Twentieth-Century Literature and Culture at Edinburgh Napier University.In these two compelling novels H.G. Wells imagines terrifying futures in which civilisation itself is threatened.The narrator of The War of the Worlds is quick to discover that what appeared to be a falling star was, in fact, a metallic cylinder landing from Mars. Six million people begin to flee London in panic as tentacled invaders emerge and overpower the city. With their heat-ray, killing machines, black gas, and a taste for fresh human blood, is there anything that can be done to stop the Martians?In The War in the Air, naive but resourceful Bert Smallways is thrilled by speed and fascinated by the new flying machines. His curiosity sweeps him away by accident into a German plan to conquer America, beginning with the destruction of New York. The ease of movement in aerial warfare means that nothing and nobody is safe as Total War erupts, civilisation crumbles, and Bert's hopes of getting back to London to marry his love seem impossibly distant.

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Book SynopsisIn these 'scientific romances' H. G. Wells sees the present reflected in the future and the future in the present. His aim is to provoke rather than predict. The Sleeper falls into a trance, waking up two centuries later as the richest man in a world of new technologies, power-greedy leaders, sensual elites, and brutalised industrial slaves. Arriving in the year 802,701, the Time-Traveller finds that humanity has evolved into two drastically different species; going farther still, he witnesses the ultimate fate of the solar system. The Chronic Argonauts, the original version of The Time Machine, pits a scientist with daring views of time and space against superstitious villagers. In all three works Wells laces vivid adventure stories with the latest ideas in biology and physics.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“For the past decade, Penguin has been producing handsome hardcover versions of their classics (…) both elegant and quirky in shocks of bright color” –The New York Times

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Book SynopsisWells's genre-defining novel of time travelWhen a Victorian scientist propels himself into the year a.d. 802,701, he is initially delighted to find that suffering has been replaced by beauty, contentment, and peace. Entranced at first by the Eloi, an elfin species descended from man, he soon realizes that these beautiful people are simply remnants of a once-great culture—now weak and childishly afraid of the dark. They have every reason to be afraid: in deep tunnels beneath their paradise lurks another race descended from humanity—the sinister Morlocks. And when the scientist’s time machine vanishes, it becomes clear he must search these tunnels if he is ever to return to his own era.This edition includes a newly established text, a full biographical essay on Wells, a list of further reading, and detailed notes. Marina Warner’s introduction considers Wells’s development of the “scientific romance” and places the noveTrade Review“[Wells] contrives to give over humanity into the clutches of the Impossible and yet manages to keep it down (or up) to its humanity, to its flesh, blood, sorrow, folly.” —Joseph Conrad

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Book SynopsisHarperCollins is proud to present its incredible range of best-loved, essential classics.I beheld, unclouded by doubt, a magnificent vision of all that invisibility might mean to a man the mystery, the power, the freedom.Griffin, a stranger, arrives at the local inn of an English village, entirely shrouded in bandages. Forbidding and unfriendly, he confines himself to his room. Driven away by the villagers and turning to an old friend for help, Griffin reveals that he has discovered how to make himself invisible, and plans to use his condition for treacherous ends. But when his friend refuses to join his quest, Griffin turns murderous, threatening to seek revenge on all who have betrayed him.H. G. Wells' controversial works are considered modern classics of the science fiction genre. Originally serialised in 1897, The Invisible Man is a fascinating exploration of power, corruption and science.Trade Review‘[Wells’ work is] astonishingly rich in human and historical interest … he foresaw the invention of, among other things, television, tanks, aerial warfare and the atom bomb’ David Lodge ‘I personally consider the greatest of English living writers [to be] H. G. Wells’ Upton Sinclair ‘The father of science fiction’ Guardian

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Book SynopsisVictorian scientist propel himself into the year 802,701 AD, where he is delighted to find that suffering has been replaced by beauty and contentment in the form of the Eloi, an elfin species descended from man. But he soon realizes that they are simply remnants of a once-great culture.

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Book SynopsisTravel into the future in this abridged retelling of The Time Machine, part of the bestselling Classic Starts series that has sold more than 8 million copies! After inventing a time machine, the Traveler leaves Victorian London and goes far, far into the future. At first, the world he discovers seems peaceful and prosperous. But as he looks farther below the surface, he realizes that things are not exactly as they first appeared. . . . This abridged retelling is the perfect way to introduce young readers to the imaginative world of science fiction and time travel.

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Book SynopsisTHE SCIENCE FICTION CLASSIC, NOW A MAJOR BBC DRAMAFor a time I believed that mankind had been swept out of existence, and that I stood there alone, the last man left alive. When an alien capsule lands on Horsell Common, Woking, crowds of astonished onlookers gather. But wonder soon turns to terror when the Martians emerge. Armed with deadly heat rays, the aliens begin their conquest of earth. Confronted by powers beyond our control, a technology far in advance of our own, and a race of alien invaders which regard us as no more than ants, humankind faces extinction. While the world crumbles under the shadow of the Martian menace, one man sets out alone across the desolate wasteland to find his wife. . . ''Groundbreaking. A true classic'' Guardian''The classic tale of alien invasion, and still the best'' The TimesTrade ReviewA true classic that has pointed the way not just for science-fiction writers, but for how we as a civilisation might think of ourselves * Guardian *The War of the Worlds remains the barometer by which all extra-terrestrial invasions are measured, from V to Independence Day to Arrival * Irish Times *The classic tale of alien invasion, and still the best * The Times *Wells occupies an honoured place in science fiction -- Kingsley AmisA born story-teller -- J.B. PriestlyWells is the Shakespeare of science fiction * Brian Aldiss *

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Book SynopsisA brilliant scientist constructs a machine, which, with the pull of a lever, propels him to the year AD 802,701. Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition of The Time Machine features an introduction by Dr Mark Bould.The Time Traveller finds himself in a verdant, seemingly idyllic landscape where he is greeted by the diminutive Eloi people. The Eloi are beautiful but weak and indolent, and the explorer is perplexed by their fear of the dark. He soon discovers the reason for their fear - the Eloi are not the only race to have inherited the earth. When his time machine disappears, the Time Traveller must descend alone into the subterranean tunnels of the Morlocks - a terrifying, carnivorous people who toil in darkness - to reclaim it.

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Book SynopsisH. G. Wells skilfully combines tension, wit and terror in The Invisible Man, a masterpiece of science fiction. Complete & Unabridged. Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover.A mysterious stranger arrives at a rural Sussex inn on a cold winter’s night with his face obscured by bandages and his body cloaked in a long, heavy coat. He locks himself in his room and spends his stay labouring over chemicals in intricate glass bottles. The villagers, bewildered by what lurks under the bandages, could never be prepared for the terrible truth: that the man is a scientist who has rendered himself invisible and is desperately struggling to find an antidote. He flees to the rugged, cliff-lined coast where, pursued by police and an angry mob, he is intent on murderous revenge.

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Book SynopsisA Victorian scientist and inventor creates a machine for propelling himself through time, and voyages to the year AD 802701, where he discovers a race of humanoids called the Eloi. Their gently indolent way of life, set in a decaying cityscape, leads the scientist to believe that they are the remnants of a once great civilization. He is forced to revise this assessment when he comes across the cave dwellings of threatening ape-like creatures known as Morlocks, whose dark underground world he must explore to discover the terrible secrets of this fractured society, and the means of getting back to his own time. A biting critique of class and social equality as well as an innovative and much imitated piece of science fiction which introduced the idea of time travel into the popular consciousness, The Time Machine is a profound and extraordinarily prescient novel.Trade ReviewI personally consider the greatest of English living writers [to be] H.G. Wells. -- Upton Sinclair

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Book SynopsisThe Penguin English Library Edition of The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells''Death!'' I shouted. ''Death is coming! Death!''In this pioneering, shocking and nightmarish tale, naïve suburban Londoners investigate a strange cylinder from space, but are instantly incinerated by an all-destroying heat-ray. Soon, gigantic killing machines that chase and feed on human prey are threatening the whole of humanity. A pioneering work of alien invasion fiction, The War of the World''s journalistic style contrasts disturbingly with its horrifying visions of the human race under siege.The Penguin English Library - 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

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Book SynopsisThe Penguin English Library Edition of The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells''People screamed. People sprang off the pavement ... The Invisible Man is coming! The Invisible Man!''With his face swaddled in bandages, his eyes hidden behind dark glasses and his hands covered even indoors, Griffin - the new guest at The Coach and Horses - is at first assumed to be a shy accident-victim. But the true reason for his disguise is far more chilling: he has developed a process that has made him invisible, and is locked in a struggle to discover the antidote. Forced from the village, and driven to murder, he seeks the aid of an old friend, Kemp. The horror of his fate has affected his mind, however - and when Kemp refuse to help, he resolves to wreak his revenge.The Penguin English Library - 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

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Book SynopsisWhen penniless businessman Mr Bedford retreats to the Kent coast to write a play, he meets by chance the brilliant Dr Cavor, an absent-minded scientist on the brink of developing a material that blocks gravity. Cavor soon succeeds in his experiments, only to tell a stunned Bedford the invention makes possible one of the oldest dreams of humanity: a journey to the moon. With Bedford motivated by money, and Cavor by the desire for knowledge, the two embark on the expedition. But neither are prepared for what they find - a world of freezing nights, boiling days and sinister alien life, on which they may be trapped forever.

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Book SynopsisWhen an army of invading Martians lands in England, panic and terror seize the population. As the aliens traverse the country in huge three-legged machines, incinerating all in their path with a heat ray and spreading noxious toxic gases, the people of the Earth must come to terms with the prospect of the end of human civilization and the beginning of Martian rule. Inspiring films, radio dramas, comic-book adaptations, television series and sequels, The War of the Worlds is a prototypical work of science fiction which has influenced every alien story that has come since, and is unsurpassed in its ability to thrill, well over a century since it was first published.Trade ReviewI personally consider the greatest of English living writers [to be] H.G. Wells. -- Upton Sinclair

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Book SynopsisGorgeous Collector's Edition of H.G. Wells' classic tale of invasion. Cylinders land on earth and invaders from Mars begin to destroy houses, then whole cities, creating panic and mass evacuation before a foul black smoke is released by the aliens. Includes a new introduction, the short story 'A Dream of Armageddon' and The First Men in the Moon.

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Book SynopsisThis handsome gift edition presents H. G. Well''s classic work of science fiction, The War of the Worlds, featuring a luxurious, silver-embossed cover design, gilded page edges and patterned endpapers.In this thrilling tale of alien invasion, H. G. Wells changed the face of the science fiction genre. Following the travails of an unnamed narrator, The War of the Worlds reveals the true terror of life under an implacable and enigmatic foe. Armed with terrifying killing machines, black smoke and Heat-Rays, the Martians arrive in London and quickly subdue the resistance put up by British forces. Faced with extraordinary odds and a world changed beyond all recognition, nothing less than the survival of the human race is at stake. This pocket gift edition contains the classic and unabridged text, presented with a silver embossed cover design, ivory pages, beautifully designed endpapers and silver gil

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Book SynopsisThis collection includes The Time Machine, The Island of Doctor Moreau, The War of the Worlds, The First Men in the Moon and The Invisible Man - all collected in a stunning leather-bound omnibus.Five of the best science fiction novels by the Grandfather of Science Fiction: unsurpassed in their timeless capacity to thrill and transfix, these are tales that reach to the heart of human ambition, fear, intelligence and hope.The Time Machine was Wells'' first major piece of fiction: a haunting vision of a far future earth orbiting a sun cooling to extinction.The War of the Worlds: still considered by many to be the best novel of alien invasion ever written.The Island of Doctor Moreau: with its terrible creation The House of Pain, this tale anticipated our terror of genetic engineering.The Invisible Man: the classic study of scientific hubris.The First Men in the Moon: a Scientific Romance, a fantastical voyage a dystopian nightmare revealed

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Book Synopsis''My next clear recollection is that we were prisoners at we knew not what depth beneath the moon''s surface ... At the village of Lympne, on the south coast of England, the ''most uneventful place in the world'' the failed playwright Mr Bedford meets the brilliant inventor Mr Cavor, and together they invade the moon. Dreaming respectively of scientific renown and of mineral wealth, they fashion a sphere from the gravity-defying substance Cavorite and go where no human has gone before. They expect a dead world, but instead they find lunar plants that grow in a single day, giant moon-calves and the ant-like Selenites, the super-adapted inhabitants of the Moon''s utopian society. The First Men in the Moon is both an inspired and imaginative fantasy of space travel and alien life, and a satire of turn-of-the-century Britain and of utopian dreams of a wholly ordered and rational society.Trade Review[An] informative and enjoyable introduction... which sets the book in its historical and literary context. * Leah Galbraith, FictionFan *Very smart-looking new editions of SF classics. * David V Barrett, Fortean Times *

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Book SynopsisWelcome to the Best of the Masterworks: a selection of the finest in science fictionWhen Edward Prendick is shipwrecked on a tropical island, he is surprised to find he has company in the form of Dr Moreau.Driven out of Britain in disgrace, Dr Moreau has decided to explore his science in peace and isolation.It isn''t long before Prendick discovers the horrors it involves . . .Considered widely to be one of the fathers of science fiction, H.G. Wells'' story of a mad scientist pushing the boundaries of humanity sits alongside Frankenstein and The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde in the annals of British classics. The novel has been adapted multiple times, and is referenced in many different media.''The most important of all nineteenth-century sf writers in the UK and in America'' - The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction''Short, cold, economic and totally unrelenting. An utterly terrifying book'' -

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Book SynopsisHarperCollins is proud to present its incredible range of best-loved, essential classics.That these man-like creatures were in truth only bestial monsters, mere grotesque travesties of men, filled me with a vague uncertainty of their possibilities far worse than any definite fear.Edward Prendick, the sole survivor of a shipwreck in the South Pacific, is set ashore on an island where he meets the mysterious Doctor Moreau. Horrified by the discovery that Moreau is performing vivisection on animals to form monstrous human hybrids, Prendick flees into the jungle. But he soon realises that the island is populated with Moreau's terrible creations, and not all are divested of their savage habits . . .H. G. Wells pioneered ideas of society, science and progress in his works, which are now considered modern classics. Written in 1896, The Island of Doctor Moreau is an imaginative exploration of the nature of cruelty and what it means to be human.Trade Review‘The Island of Doctor Moreau takes us into an abyss of human nature. This book is a superb piece of storytelling’ V. S. Pritchett ‘[Wells’ work is] astonishingly rich in human and historical interest … he foresaw the invention of, among other things, television, tanks, aerial warfare and the atom bomb’ David Lodge ‘I personally consider the greatest of English living writers [to be] H. G. Wells’ Upton Sinclair ‘The father of science fiction’ Guardian

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Book SynopsisWith an Introduction and Notes by Dr Emily Alder, Lecturer in Literature and Culture at Edinburgh Napier University 'Each time I dip a living creature into the bath of burning pain, I say: this time I will burn out all the animal, this time I will make a rational creature of my own!' declares Doctor Moreau to hapless narrator Edward Prendick. Moreau's highly controversial methods and ambitions conflict with the religious, moral and scientific norms of his day and Wells later called The Island of Doctor Moreau 'a youthful exercise in blasphemy'. Today his vivid depictions of the Beast People still strike modern readers with an uncanny glimpse of the animal in the human, while the behaviour of humans leave us wondering who is the most monstrous after all. This volume unites four of Wells' liveliest and most engaging tales of the strange evolution and behaviour of animals - including human beings. The Island of Doctor Moreau is followed by three fantastic yet chillingly plausible short stories of human-animal encounters. The Empire of the Ants is a darkly humorous account of intelligent Amazonian ants threatening to displace humans as 'the lords of the future and masters of the earth'. In The Sea Raiders, the south coast of England is terrorized by an unwelcome visit from deep-sea predator Haploteuthis ferox, while Æpyornis Island provides a marooned egg collector with an unusual companion.

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Book SynopsisThe Penguin English Library Edition of The Island of Doctor Moreau by H. G. Wells''That black figure, with its eyes of fire, struck down through all my adult thoughts and feelings, and for a moment the forgotten horrors of childhood came back to my mind''Adrift in a dinghy, Edward Prendick, the single survivor from the good ship Lady Vain, is rescued by a vessel carrying a profoundly unusual cargo - a menagerie of savage animals. Tended to recovery by their keeper Montgomery, who gives him dark medicine that tastes of blood, Prendick soon finds himself stranded upon an uncharted island in the Pacific with his rescuer and the beasts. Here, he meets Montgomery''s master, the sinister Dr. Moreau - a brilliant scientist whose notorious experiments in vivisection have caused him to abandon the civilised world. It soon becomes clear he has been developing these experiments - with truly horrific results.The Penguin English Library - 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

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Book SynopsisWhile walking in the Swiss Alps, two English travellers fall into a space-warp, and suddenly find themselves in another world. In many ways the same as our own - even down to the characters that inhabit it - this new planet is still somehow radically different, for the two walkers are now upon a Utopian Earth controlled by a single World Government. Here, as they soon learn, all share a common language, there is sexual, economic and racial equality, and society is ruled by socialist ideals enforced by an austere, voluntary elite: the ''Samurai''. But what will the Utopians make of these new visitors from a less perfect world?

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Book Synopsis''No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man''s...''So begins H. G. Wells'' classic novel in which Martian lifeforms take over planet Earth. As the Martians emerge, they construct giant killing machines - armed with heatrays - that are impervious to attack. Advancing upon London they destroy everything in their path. Everything, except the few humans they collect in metal traps.Victorian England is a place in which the steam engine is state-of-the-art technology and powered flight is just a dream. Mankind is helpless against the killing machines from Mars, and soon the survivors are left living in a new stone age.Trade ReviewGroundbreaking ... A true classic that has pointed the way not just for science-fiction writers, but for how we as a civilisation might think of ourselves * GUARDIAN *[Wells' work is] astonishingly rich in human and historical interest ... he foresaw the invention of, among other things, television, tanks, aerial warfare and the atom bomb -- David LodgeI personally consider the greatest of English living writers [to be] H. G. Wells -- Upton Sinclair

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Book SynopsisWith an Introduction and Notes by Linda Dryden, Professor of English Literature at Edinburgh Napier University and the author of Joseph Conrad and H. G. Wells: The Fin-de Siecle-Literary Scene.At the end of the nineteenth century a stranger arrives in the Sussex countryside and mayhem ensues; in the sleepy county of Kent a miracle food brings biological chaos that engulfs and threatens the entire planet. H. G. Wells's fertile and mercurial imagination never brought us more bizarre and unsettling stories than those revealed in The Invisible Man (1897) and The Food of the Gods, and How It Came to Earth (1904). These are stories of extraordinary physical transformations and are at once extremely funny and richly imaginative. At the same time, Wells poses some very probing questions about the ethical dimensions to science and the human capacity for both pity and cruelty. Brought together for the first time in this new Wordsworth edition, The Invisible Man and The Food of the Gods are two of Wells's most entertaining and thought-provoking works.

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Book Synopsis''No one would have believed, in the last years of the nineteenth century, that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man''s''Exploring the primordial nightmares that lurk within humanity''s dreams of progress and technology, H. G. Wells was a science fiction pioneer. This new omnibus edition brings together four of his hugely original and influential science-fiction novels - The Time Machine, The Island of Doctor Moreau, The Invisible Man and The War of the Worlds - with his most unsettling and strange short stories. Containing monstrous experiments, terrifying journeys, alien occupiers and grotesque creatures, these visionary tales discomfit and disturb, and retain the power to trouble our sense of who we are.With an introduction by Matthew Beaumont

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Book Synopsis''As we saw it first it was the wildest and most desolate of scenes. We were in an enormous amphitheatre, a vast circular plain, the floor of the giant crater. Its cliff-like wall closed us in on every side''Thanks to the discovery of an anti-gravity metal, Cavorite, two Victorian Englishman decide to tackle the most prestigious goal - space travel. They construct a sphere that will ultimately take them to the moon. On landing, they encounter what seems like an utterly barren landscape but they soon find signs that the planet was once very much alive. Then they hear curious hammering sounds from beneath the surface, and come face to face with the Selenites, a race of insect-like aliens living in a rigidly organised hive society.Trade ReviewWells's scientific romances were works of art with unique relevance for our timesA classic study of scientific hubris brought to destruction - THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF SCIENCE FICTIONThe Prospero of all the brave new worlds of the mind, and the Shakespeare of science fiction

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Book SynopsisEdward Prendick is shipwrecked and finds himself stranded on an island in the Pacific. Here he meets the sinister Dr Moreau, a vivisectionst driven out of Britain in disgrace. And soon strange events cause Prendick to uncover the full horror of Dr Moreau''s activities on the island.THE ISLAND OF DR MOREAU mixes discussion on the divide between humans and the animal kingdom and chilling macabre horror in an unrivalled fashion. Its question on how far science should go is one that rings true today as it did when it was first published.Trade ReviewThe Prospero of all the brave new worlds of the mind, and the Shakespeare of science fiction - Brian W. AldissWells' scientific romances were . . . works of art with unique relevance for our times - Arthur C. Clarke

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Book SynopsisIn The War of the Worlds H. G. Wells invented the myth of invasion from outer space. Martians land near London, conquering all before them, and ruin the metropolis; the fate of civilization and even of the human race remains in doubt until the very last.Trade ReviewAn interesting and informative foreword and notes by Darryl Jones... I highly recommend these OWC editions -- I find the forewords, without being overly long, pack in a lot of information and add a huge amount to my appreciation of the books.Table of ContentsIntroduction Note on the Text Select Bibliography A Chronology of H. G. Wells THE WAR OF THE WORLDS Explanatory Notes

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Book SynopsisAdrift in a dinghy, Edward Prendick, the single survivor from the good ship Lady Vain, is rescued by a vessel carrying an unusual cargo—a menagerie of savage animals. Nursed to recovery by their keeper Montgomery, who gives him dark medicine that tastes of blood, Prendick soon finds himself stranded upon an uncharted island in the Pacific with his rescuer and the beasts. There, he meets the sinister Dr. Moreau—a brilliant scientist whose notorious experiments in vivisection have caused him to abandon the civilized world. It soon becomes clear that he has continued to develop these experiments with truly horrific results. The edition includes a newly established text, a full biographical essay on Wells, a list of further reading, and detailed note. Margaret Atwood’s introduction explores the social and scientific relevance of this influential work.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the Engli

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Book SynopsisA cautionary horror story about the dangers of greed, isolation and a science without ethics, from the father of science fiction. The stranger arrives early in February, one wintry day, through a biting wind and a driving snow. He is wrapped up from head to foot, and the brim of his hat hides every inch of his face. Rude and rough, the stranger works with strange apparatus locked in his room all day and walks along lonely lanes at night, his bandaged face inspiring fear in children and dogs. Is he the mutilated victim of an accident? A criminal on the run? An eccentric genius? But no-one in the village comes close to guessing who has come amongst them, or what those bandages hide. ‘Wells was the founding father of science fiction, and in his utopian fantasy novels he was proved eerily correct’ Daily TelegraphTrade ReviewEnduringly captivating * Observer *Pioneering * Daily Mail *Wells was the founding father of science fiction, and in his utopian fantasy novels he was proved eerily correct * Daily Telegraph *The original; and far better than any of the film versions * The Times *An old tale of scientific hubris that walks the line between comedy and horror * New York Times *

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Book SynopsisHarperCollins is proud to present its incredible range of best-loved, essential classics.Welcome to Utopia.When Mr. Barnstaple, an Earthling, is accidentally transported to Utopia with a group of others, he begins an adventure that will change how he views the world forever.Utopia has no government. Utopia has no religion. People are governed only by their own conscience and desires, and Barnstaple is drawn into what he sees as a perfect society. But when a disease brought by the Earthlings threatens the existence of the Utopians, Barnstaple must make a choice: take over Utopia, or betray his own people to save a world he has grown to admire

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Book SynopsisAn abridged and illustrated chapter book retelling of the sci-fi classicpart of the bestselling Classic Starts series that has sold more than 8 million copies! H. G. Wells, a revolutionary science fiction writer and the author ofThe Time Machine, dazzles in this sci-fi classic about Martians invading Earth. One of the first stories to imagine a war between humankind and extraterrestrials,The War of the Worldsis an adventure that has inspired artists and scientists since it was first published. The Classic Starts series has sold more than 8 million copies since it launched in 2004. These abridged, kid-friendly editions are the perfect way to introduce beloved stories to the next generation. Each book includes discussion questions by early childhood educator Arthur Pober, EdD.

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Book SynopsisExam board: OCR, EduqasLevel & Subject: GCSE English LiteratureFirst teaching: September 2015Next exams: 2024This edition of The War of the Worlds is perfect for GCSE-level students, with the complete novel, engaging introduction written by a teacher and a handy glossary at the back of the book.Fantastic value for H G Wells The War of the Worlds bookEasy to read font in an accessible formatA new introduction provides contextBespoke glossary explains key termsTrade Review“The new Collins Classroom Classic editions are perfect for schools – clear text, bright covers, a good size for pockets and bags, and a great price that makes buying new class or cohort sets very attractive in these budget-conscious times.” de Stafford School

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Book SynopsisWith his face swaddled in bandages, his eyes hidden behind dark glasses and his hands covered even indoors, Griffin the new guest at The Coach and Horses is at first assumed to be a shy accident-victim.Trade Review“I personally consider the greatest of English living writers [to be] H. G. Wells.” —Upton Sinclair

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